“I’m training right now, physically, like I’m a player,” he said. “I’m in the best shape I’ve been since I played. I don’t think (manager) Ned Yost would have a guy who is 51 years old on his team but that, in a sense, is what he’s got.

“That’s what I do as a broadcaster. I have a player’s mentality. That’s what I share with the people — what the guy is thinking; how he’s going to go about beating this guy; why he did something.”

Personally I prefer my announcers to not have a player’s mentality. I want them to be an individual, not a teammate. In fact, I want them to stand outside of the team framework entirely — mentally and in his day-to-day existence — and provide independent insight and criticism whenever necessary.

But hey, if Hudler can bench twice his weight while trying to do that, more power to him.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports Thursday that the Orioles “are said to have begun fielding calls of interest” on superstar Manny Machado and “are close to the point of seriously weighing whether to trade him.”

You’d think it would be a no-brainer for the last-place O’s to flip Machado — an impending free agent — for prospects, but Heyman notes there is “still a question whether or not longtime Orioles owner Peter Angelos” will give the go-ahead. One person familiar with the situation put it a “50-50” likelihood. Another suggested that it would take a massive return, which, sure.

Machado entered play Thursday with a sensational .328/.405/.635 batting line, 15 home runs, and an MLB-leading 43 RBI in 49 games. It’d be a real shock if he’s still wearing an O’s uniform by the end of July.

Heyman reported previously that at least nine teams made aggressive plays for Machado this winter, including the Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers, Indians, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Red Sox, White Sox, and Cardinals. A whole lot of those teams still make sense here in late May — maybe all of them except the White Sox.